National Republican., 1887-05-07
ONLY WANTING THEIR SHARE
In the Disbursement OF the Appro-
priation for Street improvements.

says:
| According to the statement OF Capt. Eugene
| Griffin Comptroller Durham's decision throw,
out from the amount appropriated for street.
ana avenues about $4,000. And he states tha
the northwest section is likely to suffer the
| most heavily.
The decision that New Jersey avenue shal
| pc paved TO boundary street will take $1,000
from the Sl39, 800 Appropriated by the schedule
| Of the commissioners to the northwest section
leaving so,SG for for M the remainder Of this sec
| ton. VI this Sg1,S 500 our immediate section
| will receive $40, 300, that is 5000 for the i'm
| provement of Twelfth street from Rhode Is
land avenue to Vermont avenue, aud 81, ,70C
street. BY e
the streets in our section we have found thai
the following are in need of Improvement.
i street from Thirteenth to Fourteenth street,
holes. On Fifteenth street from @ to Sthe con.
| crete Is worn into holes ,On Fifteenth from 10
boundary there Is merely dirt road, but on
Gently erected. T street Is macadamiged. New
York avenue ebetweenFourteenth and Fifteenth
streets needs repairs, especially about the
tween it andB oundary running east aud
west are dirt roads. 3 street from Vermont
avenue TO Eleventh, Twelfth street from
tMesn veIman, lsana ayenus out ana street. be-
all merely dirt roads. Vermont avenue from
street out is macadamized, and Eleventh
street rom street out is a cobble.stone pave.
|
tween the railway tracks and adjoining them
This inspection has not been complete and
we have no doubt that some repairs are needed
IN other streets In our section. We have
noticed since making the above inspection
that some of the streets named are undergoing
repairs. II may not be aniss here to cali att
tention 10 the fact as shown In the last report
OF the commissioners that the northwest section
contains Al per cent. of the city's area, rs Der
cent. OF the taxable property, ana 81 per cent.
OF the population,
II nothing more can be done for these streets
curing the present season than what has be IN
announced In the published schedule of the
commissioners your committee rec )mmend
tive committee 10 induce the authorities to
make better provision for them in the next
appropriation. Much of the property on these
streets is assessed at high figures. and IL should
be an axiom that where the heaviest taxes are
PAID there should be more expended in the i'm
proyements at least when they are needed.
IL sounds well to say that we should do all
invest here; and so we should, II their invest
ments should be permanent and the proceeds
Kept with us But we have. plenty Of knowl-
edge of gentlemen of high financial ability
engineering syndcates to buy up property out.
side the city limits at the rate OF about cents
per foot Or less. and then, by cunning use of
!,nn Inc innnence which they WELD, procuring the
selling to our simple citizens after few years
at " or more per foot, pocketing the 95 cents
proht 70 carry away to their own homes like
were leit TO the usual. natural, or the poitico.
economical course Of development, and not
submitted sll to this hotbed process of enforce
its present ample limits, and increasing iHs ni in
beauty and con, eniences without the inces-
SAINT cry for more police, more water,
mSre ast not payemenSis Ss,o more railways, and
proper time arrived, then perforce, the bounds
would be naturally and easily overleaped
and the suburban property brought within
our ,,Iai iimts IN It's own proper and our conve-
That we have abundant room within our
present bounds VIII be evident by a compari-
ample. In seven wards ofthat city the average
population to the acre was in 1886, 1866. In one
ward the fourteenth, the average to the acre
was SSs, q and m the general average in all the
course all the waste ground, the vast Central
PARK and other parks were included. The
population of our city, including Georgetown,
the average to the acre was 2S.69 The area OF
washington, including Georgetown. Is $3.50
acres. II THIS area were peopled as. thickly as
the bounds of the city Of New York, il would
contain 81 ,5i4 people. Now we must remem-
Der that there Is great deal of unoccupied
ground In the city Of New York still waiting to
If our city were peopled as thiekly as the
average OF the seven wards before mentioned,
II would contain LIB 500 people, and II 1t were
is, II would contain 3,423,9O0.
II such is our capacity. what reason can
the,e th be for stretching our bounds further aud
probably ruinous, taxation?
II people want to build country villas con-
yenient to the city let them build them, and
let the authorities give them convenient access
by good country roads at a cost in proportion
70 their assessment and taxation. Let them
nave their springs and their wells aud their
delightful "old oaken buckels," aud then
n mi nv mi fau II
not rudely encroach upon their retirement aud
quietude with our city ''improyements' until
our growth absolutely requires that we should
We hope we have not degenerated to that
degree Of slavery that we fear to resist any
encroachments upon our rights because we are
told by one In authority that If we persist in
advancing before Congress our own views of
what Is best for us that we will become the
aversion of that body and lose its assistance
n promoting the prosperity of the capital of
We have no doubt that oaloials>>in power
consider every man Il nuisance who presumes
70 interfere with their plans or to question
1t is true that the management of our aff,ir |
is now entrusted to an autocracy of three |
head, or rather to three separate aud distinct |
and body, for our three rulers seem to have |
divided our interests into three parts, of which |
each has assumed to himself one. This may
be In some respects preferable to the late priv |
ilege OF suffrage which we were supposed to |
enjoy, but 1t cannot be denied that II is also |
open TO- serious objection. Yet, while we ac- |
cept II for the present as the best we can get, |
vigilant guard over our own rights and Inter. |
ests and let our governors and congressman |
know that we intend to 40 so, while we repu |
diete the accusation that we are organic I'd |
only for opposition and to quarrel with some. |
body.
DIR. Lovejoy spoke at length In defense OF |
the report. He held that section should |
have fair proportion Of the appropriations.
He did not believe In extending the street
improvements outside Of the city limits to
he detriment Of the city's welfare He did
not object to the purchase of property by
indicates outside Of the city, but because
hey did so was to him no reason for street
improvements following the purchases. He
wanted for his section what II was fairly
entitled to. Section was well populated, |
md the business interests OF the locality
equired improvements, especially the un-
,aved streets. New Jersey avenue i'm.
'royement, he thought, was not necessity.
Mr.. A. 5. Pratt referred to the bad con.
|itlon OF the street railroad beds, and cited
n Instance Of the destruction OF carriage
y hole In the Ninth street roadbed. He
hought 10 matter for the commissioners
o look after.
Secretary Fenwick argued that the side.
'alks and pavements should be repaired.
n bad weather ladies could hardly 20 ou.
n the streets on account Of the pools OF
'ater standing both In the streets aud on
be sidewalks. He did not believe in
topping the coming of capital, but wanted
encouraged to come here.
Mr. George w. Dyer said that the com
littee should be thanked for the excellence
the report, hut he desired to criticlse 1t
l that he thought 1t should be amended In
lch way as to show what improvements
ad already been made In their section aud
10 cost OF the same. He believed In the
'etion looking out for itself.
Rev. DIR. Domer made an appeal In behalf
investors in real estate, who, he said,
iould be encouraged to come here. He
rev the inference that the report meant 10
eep out this class Of men. lie wanted to
'e the nations capital made beautiful and
le pride OF the nation. Men OF means
ith snecnlatIua nhiants IN ,,inur ahnnII T. |,